GSM Call Drop: Influence Factors + Troubleshooting Methods and Tools + Deliverables

Security Level:
10/07/15
GSM Call Drop: Influence Factors +

Troubleshooting Methods and Tools +
Deliverables
Prepared by: Wang Zhicheng
Approved by: Qi Haofeng
www.huawei.com
July 30, 2011
HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.
Huawei Confidential
Abstract
This slide provides the main factors that affect the GSM call drop rate, 14 standard
actions required for troubleshooting call drops, and the methods for identifying the
main factors that affect the GSM call drop rate, such as analyzing top N problem cells
and call history records (CHRs). This slide also lists the required deliverables for
reporting call drops, including the analysis results of top N problem cells and CHRs. In
addition, this slide provides some representative cases, which indicate that it is
significant for onsite engineers to analyze call drops according to the standard actions
and call drops are mainly caused by common problems including inappropriate
parameter settings, cross coverage, missing neighboring cells, interference, and
indoor signal leakage.
Huawei Confidential
Change History
Date
Version
2010-11-30
Version issued
in December
2010
Description
1. Added principles for selecting top N cells.
2. Added CHR analysis, including the instructions for
analyzing CHRs by using the Nastar and Insightsharp.
3. Added common measures for optimizing call drops.
4. Added the checklist for troubleshooting call drops.
2011-07-30
Version issued
in July 2011
1. Added call drop analysis based on various data and

required actions to focus on the procedure for
analyzing call drops and the required data and tools.
2. Added the methods for identifying and
troubleshooting call drops caused by other factors.
3. Added the required actions for troubleshooting call
drops.
4. Added the impacts of parameter settings from other
vendors on call drops and related cases.
5. Added the impacts of traffic sharing on a dual-band
network or a network configured with the co-BCCH on
call drops and related cases.
6. Added the impact of seasonal changes in KPIs on
call drops and related cases.
Reviewer
Yan Yafeng (employee ID: 37189), Zha
Shuangliu (employee ID: 57469), Zhao Jinjin
(employee ID: 105415), Ni Hongxiang
(employee ID: 50324), Zhu Kan (employee
ID: 137966), Chen Ruiqun (employee ID:
140495), Chen Kai (employee ID: 143018), Li
Wenhui (employee ID: 146717), Jiang Ying
(employee ID: 162124), Peng Xiang
(employee ID: 119711), Chen Wei (employee
ID: 119773)
Wang
Zhicheng
(employee
ID: 151324)
Qi Haofeng (employee ID: 118729), Si

Fazhong (employee ID: 119461), Chen Wei
(employee ID: 119773), Wang Fei (employee
ID: 162184), Zhang Liang (employee ID:
51995), Zha Shuangliu (employee ID: 57469),
Zhao Jinjin (employee ID: 105415), Shi Yuan
(employee ID: 146349), Guo Hongliang
(employee ID: 42533),
Wang
Zhicheng
(employee
ID: 151324),
Xu Binbin
(employee
ID: 39448)
Ni Hongxiang (employee ID: 50342), Zhu Kan

(employee ID: 137966), Chen Ruiqun
(employee ID: 140495), Chen Kai (employee
ID: 143018), Li Wenhui (employee ID:
146717), Li Peng (employee ID: 52434), Liu
Fang (employee ID: 58813), Jiang Xueyi
(employee ID: 59075), Xun Lijun (employee
ID: 54865), Wan Lu (employee ID: 51624),
Wang Song (employee ID: 55188)
7. Added the cases of optimizing the top N cells where

call drops occur.
Author
Huawei Confidential
R&D Technical Support

For call drops, Huawei provides trainings and 7 x 24-hour technical
support.
The following table lists the R&D technical support personnel and
their contact methods.
Name
Employee ID
Telephone Number
Wang Zhicheng
00151324
See the telephone book.
Xu Binbin
00039448
See the telephone book.
Huawei Confidential
Page 4
Call Drop Problem Overview

Cause Analysis and Data Processing
Actions and Deliverables Required for
Troubleshooting Call Drops
Call Drop Cases
Huawei Confidential
Page 5
Call Drop Measurement
A call drops when it is terminated abnormally. For example, a call is terminated because the BSC
or the MS releases the TCH due to an exception.
Call drop measurement: When receiving a Connection Failure or an Error Indication message
from the BTS, the BSC sends the Clear Request message to the MSC and measures one call
drop in a corresponding performance counter based on the cause value.
Call drop measurement during drive tests (DTs): The BSC measures one normal call release
when the Disconnect or Channel Release message is received during a DT call. Only when the
BSC receives neither of the preceding messages and the MS enters idle mode from the
dedicated mode, the BSC measures one call drop.
Huawei Confidential
Page 6
Call Drop Types in Terms of KPIs
The BSC measures call drops by cause, which facilitates call drop type identification and
cause analysis.
In normal cases, most call drops are caused by Um interface problems, and therefore you
need to focus on these call drops. Call drops caused by Um interface problems are measured
as CM33C and classified into call drops in the stable state and call drops due to handovers.
Call drops due to other causes seldom occur and are easy to locate. You need to focus on
only CM334 and CM333.
You need not pay attention to call drops caused by loop back because loopback is seldom
CM33:CELL_TRAF_CH_CALL_DROPS
used on the network.
CM33C:
CELL_T
RAF_CH
_UM_C
ALL_DR
OPS
CM330:
CELL_T
RAF_CH
_CALL_
DROPS_
IN_STA
BLE_ST
ATE
CM332:C
ELL_TR
AF_CH_
CALL_D
ROPS_N
O_MR
CM333:
CELL_T
RAF_CH
_CALL_
DROPS_
ABIS_L
NK_FAI
L
CM334:
CELL_T
RAF_CH
_CALL_
DROPS_
EQUIP_
FAIL
CM335:
CELL_T
RAF_CH
_CALL_
DROPS_
FORCE_
HO
CM397:
CELL_L
OOP_ST
ART_FA
IL_DRO
PS
CM385:C
ELL_LO
OP_RES
TORE_F
AIL_DR
OPS
CM331:
CELL_T
RAF_CH
_CALL_
DROPS_
HO_FAI
L
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Page 7
Types of Call Drops Caused by Um

Interface Problems in Terms of KPIs
CM33C:CELL_TRAF_CH_UM_CALL_DROPS
Call drops caused by Um interface problems

are classified into call drops in the stable
state and call drops due to handovers.
Call drops in the stable state: You need to
focus on CM3300 and CM3301. In normal
cases, most call drops in the stable state are
measured as CM3301.
Call drops due to handovers: In normal
cases, the percentage of inter-cell handovers
is high. Therefore, most call drops due to
handovers are measured as H3127Ca and
H3128Ca.
By analyzing the percentages of various call
drops, you can determine whether the call
drop problem is caused by a certain reason. If
the call drops of a specific type whose
percentage is generally low increase, you
need to focus on these call drops.
CM330:CELL
_TRAF_CH_C
ALL_DROPS_
IN_STABLE_
STATE
CM3300:
CELL_TR
AF_CH_S
TATIC_S
TATE_CA
LL_DROP
S_ERR_I
ND
CM3301
:CELL_
TRAF_C
H_STAT
IC_STA
TE_CAL
L_DROP
S_CONN
_FAIL
CM331:CE
LL_TRAF_
CH_CALL_
DROPS_HO
_FAIL
CM3302:
CELL_TR
AF_CH_S
TATIC_S
TATE_CA
LL_DROP
S_REL_I
ND
Huawei Confidential
H3027Ca:
CELL_INT
RACELL_H
O_FAIL_E
XP_TCHF_
TRAF
H3028Ca:
CELL_INT
RACELL_H
O_FAIL_E
XP_TCHH_
TRAF
H3127Ca:
CELL_INT
RABSC_OU
TCELL_HO
_FAIL_EX
P_TCHF_T
RAF_NOT_
INCLUDE_
DR
Page 8
H3128Ca:
CELL_INT
RABSC_OU
TCELL_HO
_FAIL_EX
P_TCHH_T
RAF_NOT_
INCLUDE_
DR
H3227Ca:
CELL_INT
RABSC_IN
CELL_HO_
FAIL_EXP
_TCHF_TR
AF
H3228Ca:
CELL_INT
RABSC_IN
CELL_HO_
FAIL_EXP
_TCHH_TR
AF
Example: Percentages of Various Call

Drops
in
Xingtai
The percentages of various call drops on the network in Xingtai are as follows:
Call drops caused by Um interface problems takes 98.21% and call drops due to other causes
takes only 1.79%. This proportion is normal. If the percentage of call drops due to other
causes is high, for example, the percentage of CM334 (call drops due to device faults) is high,
you need to check for hardware faults and alarms.
For call drops caused by Um interface problems, the percentage of call drops in the stable
state is higher than that of call drops due to handovers. For call drops in the stable state, the
percentage of call drops caused by radio link failures (M3101A and M3201A) is the highest.
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Page 9

Call Drop Cases
Huawei Confidential
Page 10
Procedure for Analyzing Call Drops

Based on Various Data
Step 1: Determine the scope of the call drop problem by analyzing performance
dataor CHRs. The scope of the call drop problem can be top N cells, entire network,
top N cells+entire network, top N MS types, or top N subscribers.
NOTE 1: The methods for determining the scope of the call drop problem vary according to scenario. If
the call drop rate increases after network swapping or upgrade, you need to compare the performance
dataor CHRs before and after the network swapping or upgrade. If the call drop rate on a network is
always high and cannot meet the requirement, you need only to analyze the current performance
dataor CHRs.
NOTE 2: performance dataare generally used to determine whether the scope of the call drop problem
is top N cells, entire network, or top N cells+entire network. If call drops occur because certain types of
MSs are used or only calls of certain subscribers drop, you need to analyze CHRs.
Step 2: Analyze call drop causes based on various data.

Step 3: Take required actions according to the checklist to analyze root causes of
call drops and determine how to troubleshoot call drops.
NOTE: The required actions for analyzing call drops are described in the next section.
Step 4: Troubleshoot call drops and evaluate the result. If the call drop problem is
not resolved, repeat step 1 through step 4.
Huawei Confidential
Page 11
Principle for Analyzing Call Drops: Analyze Data,

Provide a Conclusion, and Determine the Next Action
You can take most required
actions by using tools, which
facilitate the analysis of data
such as traffic statistics, CHRs,
neighboring cell data,
parameters, alarms, and radio
frequency (RF) channel data.
Based on the analysis result, you
can determine how to
troubleshoot the call drop
problem. When troubleshooting
the call drop problem, focus on
the main cause so that the
problem can be resolved as soon
as possible.
1. Determine the scope of the call

drop problem
2. Analyze the call drop causes
3-1. Take the required actions for analyzing the

call drop problem and provide a conclusion or a
temporary conclusion on root causes
3-2. Provide solutions and determine how to

troubleshoot the call drop problem
4-1. Troubleshoot the call drop problem by troubleshooting

the main causes first and then other causes
4-2. Check
whether the call drop problem
is solved?
Yes
4-3. Provide a summary report and cases
Huawei Confidential
Page 12
No
Determining the Scope of the Call Drop

Problem Methods for determining top N cells, top N
MS types, or top N subscribers
The methods for determining top N cells, top N MS types, and top N subscribers vary according to
the scenario where call drops occur.
Scenario 1: The call drop rate increases abruptly because of unknown reasons after network
swapping or upgrade.
Method for determining top N cells: Calculate the difference in the call drop rates and the
difference in the numbers of call drops during a specified time range when the call drop KPIs
deteriorate for each cell. Rank cells according to the differences in the call drop rates in
descending order to obtain the top N cells with increased call drop rates and rank cells according
to the differences in the numbers of call drops in descending order to obtain the top N cells with
increased numbers of call drops. The methods for determining top N MS types and top N
subscribers are similar to that for determining top N cells.
Scenario 2: The call drop rate in the current network does not meet the requirement all the time.
Method for determining top N cells: Rank cells according to the call drop rates in descending order
to obtain the top N cells with high call drop rates and rank cells by the numbers of call drops in
descending order to obtain the top N cells with large numbers of call drops.
The methods for determining top N MS types and top N subscribers are similar to that for
determining top N cells.
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Page 13
Determining the Scope of the Call Drop

Problem Criteria
Top N cells: After 20% of top N cells with high call drop rates and top N cells with large numbers of call drops
are ignored, the call drop rate of the entire network improves significantly and becomes similar to the call
drop rate before the call drop KPIs deteriorate, or the call drop rate of the entire network meets the
requirement.
Entire network: After 20% of top N cells with high call drop rates and top N cells with large numbers of call
drops are ignored, the call drop rate of the entire network does not improve.
Top N cells+entire network: After 20% of top N cells with high call drop rates and top N cells with large
numbers of call drops are ignored, the call drop rate of the entire network improves but is still higher than the
call drop rate before the call drop KPIs deteriorate and does not meet the requirement.
Top N MS types or subscribers: After 20% of top N types of MSs or 20% of top N subscribers with high call
drop rates are ignored, the call drop rate of the entire network improves significantly and becomes similar to
the call drop rate before the call drop KPIs deteriorate, or the call drop rate of the entire network meets the
requirement.
NOTE: The MS compatibility problem usually occurs during network swapping. However, CHRs or data
similar to CHRs on the original network may be unavailable. In this case, you need to pay attention to
subscriber complaints and check whether subscribers complain about call drops.
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Page 14
Analyzing Call Drop Causes

After determining the scope of the call drop problem,
analyze the call drop causes by analyzing the following
data:
Traffic statistics
CHRs
Signaling
DT data
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Page 15
Analyzing Traffic Statistics
By analyzing traffic statistics, you can identify call drops caused by Um interface problems (call drops in the stable state and
call drops caused by handovers) and call drops caused by device faults (call drops caused by transmission faults and device
faults). You can also further identify call drops caused by the Um interface problems such as low levels and poor
transmission quality. However, you cannot identify call drops caused by core network (CN) problems by analyzing traffic
statistics.
Provide the R&D personal with the performance statistical report obtained by analyzing performance datausing tools.
Huawei Confidential
Page 16
Tools and Methods for Analyzing Traffic

Statistics
Call drop rates and percentages of various call drops
Tools: excel template attached and OMStar to be released

Method: Determine the top N cells with high call drop rates based
on the call drop rates and the numbers of call drops. Calculate the
call drop rate of the entire network by ignoring the call drops occur
in the top N cells to determine the scope of the call drop problem.
Templates for calculating the call drop rate and the percentages of
various call drops:
1. Obtain the performance dataand paste the performance datain
the Call Drop Measurement sheet of the attached excel template.
The contents in the table head of the sheet is arranged according to
the sequence specified by the PRS and you can change the
sequence as required.
2. Refresh the table in the Calculate Call Drop Ratio sheet to
obtain the call drop rates of cells and filter out the top N cells by
using the TOP Cell Filter sheet.
3. Set filtering criteria on the Call Drop Measurement sheet and
use the Call Drop Ratio&Plenty Ratio sheet to calculate the call
drop rates and the percentages of various call drops.
Template for analyzing call drop data:

Template for
analyzing call drop data
M3030A:Call
M3030B:Call
M3030C:Call
M3030D:Call
M3030G:Call
M3030H:Call
M3030I:Call
M3030J:Call
M3030K:Call
Drops
Drops
Drops
Drops
Drops
Drops
Drops
Drops
Drops
Huawei Confidential
on
on
on
on
on
on
on
on
on
Call Drop(RF Cause)

TCH(TA)
0.00%
TCH(Uplink Received Level)
81.82%
TCH(Downlink Received Level)
0.00%
TCH(Uplink and Downlink Received Level) 0.00%
TCH(Uplink and Downlink FER)
0.00%
TCH(Uplink Quality)
0.00%
TCH(Downlink Quality)
9.09%
TCH(Uplink and Downlink Quality)
0.00%
TCH(Other)
9.09%
Page 17
Analyzing CHRs
Call Drop Caused by the Um Interface Problems
CHR is a call history record, which logs the detailed
information about each call.

By analyzing CHRs using the Nastar, you can identify call
drops caused by CN problems (do not affect call drop KPIs),

Um interface problems, and transmission and device faults
and further identify call drops caused by the Um interface
problems.
Call Drops on TCH(TA)

Call Drops on TCH(Uplink Received Level)
Call Drops on TCH(Uplink Interference)
Call Drops on TCH(Uplink Received Level Suddenly
Decrease)
Call Drops on TCH(Uplink Quality)
Call Drops on TCH(Downlink Received Level)
Call Drops on TCH(Downlink Interference)
Call Drops on TCH(Downlink Quality)
Call Drops on TCH(Downlink Received Level Suddenly
Decrease)
Call Drops on TCH(Uplink and Downlink Received
Level)
Call Drops on TCH(Uplink and Downlink Interference)
Call Drops on TCH(Uplink and Downlink Quality)
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Page 18
Percentage Times
2.17%
5
41.30%
95
3.04%
7
0.00%
39.13%
2.17%
1.30%
10.87%
90
5
3
25
0.00%
0.00%
0.00%
0.00%
0
0
Tools and Methods for Analyzing CHRs

Tools: Nastar, Insightsharp, and Insightsharp components. You can use the cell performance analysis function of
the Nastar to analyze CHRs and identify the causes of abnormal releases. You can use the Insightsharp to
analyze the CHRs of BSCs, top N cell groups, or top N cells to identify and sort call drop causes offline. The
Insightsharp components are developing and will be release in the near future.
By using the Insightsharp, you can filter CHRs by field to sort call drops according to causes and calculate the
percentages of various call drops. You can also manually sort call drops based on the results generated by the
Insightsharp.
See the Insightsharps help.
Huawei Confidential
Page 19
Analyzing Signaling and Single-Subscriber CHRs
By analyzing signaling and single-subscriber CHRs, you can identify the call drop causes
based on the signaling procedures and measurement reports (MRs).
Abis signaling can be traced by cell. That is, you can trace the Abis signaling all calls in a cell.
Single-subscriber signaling contains all information about the calls of a single subscriber.
CHRs log the information about all historical calls but contain limited MRs.
By analyzing the signaling traced over the Abis interface, you can identify the cause of a call
drop based on the messages related to call drops and the level and quality information in MRs.
By analyzing the single-subscriber signaling and CHRs, you can identify the call drop causes of
a single subscriber.
Huawei Confidential
Page 20
Tools and Methods for Analyzing

Signaling and Single-Subscriber CHRs
Use the Traffic Recording Review tool on the local maintenance terminal (LMT) to display the
signaling of a single subscriber and analyze the signaling procedure and the level and quality
information in the MRs.
Use the Insightsharp to display the CHRs of a single subscriber, the detailed call signaling, and ten
MRs generated before call drops and analyze these data.
Use the PFMStudio to analyze the signaling traced over the Abis interface. Select the path where the
Abis signaling file to be analyzed is saved and click RUN. The PFMStudio automatically export files
with the signaling related to one call drop saved in one file. All the files are saved to the out directory
in the path for saving the Abis signaling file. Click Icon Display and perform signaling analysis.
Huawei Confidential
Page 21
Analyzing DT Data
DT data contains only the downlink information about a single subscriber.

Therefore, you can analyze the DT data together with the single-subscriber
signaling to identify the call drop causes.
You can perform DTs in top N cells or top N areas to identify call drop causes.
DT call drops
Neighboring cell
relationships
Due to missing configuration of

neighboring cell relationships,
handovers cannot be triggered
in time. Due to redundant
neighboring cell relationship,
inappropriate handovers occur.
This, then, causes call drops.
Handover
parameters
Due to inappropriate
configuration of
handover parameters,
handovers cannot be
triggered in time or
inappropriate
handovers occur. This,
then, causes call
drops.
Interference
problems
Due to cofrequency/adjacentfrequency
interference, internetwork
interference, or
intermodulation
interference of
equipment, call
drops due to bad
quality occur.
Huawei Confidential
Cross
coverage
Due to the
geographical
location and
terrain of the site,
cross coverage is
caused and then
call drops occur.
Page 22
Terminal
problems
Because some
terminals do not
analyze the levels
and BSICs of
neighboring cells in
time, handovers
cannot be triggered in
time. This, then,
causes call drops.
Tools and Methods for Analyzing DT Data
Tools: TEMS and Probe. The TEMS or Probe can play back DT data such as level,
quality, and signal noise ratio and presents the DT data explicitly on the GUI. By
analyzing the DT data, you can identify the call drop causes.
DT data can provide more downlink information such as the BA2 list than signaling
and traffic statistics.
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Page 23

Call Drop Cases
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Page 24
Principle for Analyzing Call Drops: Analyze

Data, Provide a Conclusion, and Determine
the
Next
Action
You can take most required actions
by using tools, which facilitate the
analysis of data such as traffic
statistics, CHRs, neighboring cell
data, parameters, alarms, and
radio frequency (RF) channel data.
Based on the analysis result, you
can determine how to troubleshoot
the call drop problem. When
troubleshooting the call drop
problem, focus on the main cause
so that the problem can be
resolved as soon as possible.
1. Determine the scope of the call

drop problem
2. Analyze the call drop causes
3-1. Take the required actions for analyzing the

call drop problem and provide a conclusion or a
temporary conclusion on root causes
3-2. Provide solutions and determine how to

troubleshoot the call drop problem
4-1. Troubleshoot the call drop problem by

troubleshooting the main causes first and then
other causes
4-2. Check whether the call drop problem

is solved?
Yes
4-3. Provide a summary report and cases
Huawei Confidential
Page 25
No
The causes of call drops are complicated.

Currently, a checklist containing 14 check items
is available for identifying call drop scopes and
causes, including top N problem cells, top N
causes, and combination of some causes. You
are advised to perform analysis according to the
checklist.
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Page 26
Call Drops in Top N Cells Required

Action Checklist (1)
Required Action
Operation
Deliverable
Subsequent Action
Analyze performance data to determine the scope of the

Identify call drop causes by call drop problem and identify the call drop causes
1. Top N types of call drops and causes.
analyzing performance data In special scenarios such as network swapping, analyze
2. Subsequent actions to be taken.
and CHRs
CHRs to determine whether calls initiated by certain
types of MSs or certain subscribers always drop.
Take required actions according to

the top N types of call drops and
causes.
Check RF tunnels for main

and diversity faults, cross
connections, and
interference
Check for RF tunnel faults by referring to the Detection

and Troubleshooting of GSM RF Tunnel Faults theme.
Check for device faults and

alarms
Check for device faults and alarms by referring to the

GSM Parameters Check theme and output the check
results.
1. Check results.
Check the reasonableness and consistency of

parameter settings by referring to the GSM Parameters
Check theme and output the check results.
1. Check results.
1. Optimize parameter settings.
Check all parameters
2. Solutions and measures for optimizing

parameter settings.
2. Provide a summary report and

cases.
Check for BTS or BSC version differences and

parameter differences by referring to the GSM
Parameters Check theme and output the check results
and impacts of the differences.
1. Check results and impacts of the

differences.
Check for BTS or BSC

version differences and
parameter differences

parameter settings and BTS or BSC
versions.

cases.
Check the parameters of

the devices from other
vendors in the boundaries
of the areas served by the
devices from other vendors
Check the parameter settings and versions of the

devices that are from other vendors and in the
boundaries of the areas served by the devices from
other vendors by referring to the GSM Parameters
Check theme and output the check results.
1. Check results.
1. Rectify the RF tunnel faults.
2. Solutions and measures for rectifying the 2. Provide a summary report and
RF tunnel faults.
cases.
1. Rectify the device faults and
clear the alarms.
2. Solutions and measures for rectifying the

device faults and clearing the alarms.
cases.
1. Inappropriate parameter settings of the

devices from other vendors.
the parameter settings.
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Page 27
2. Optimize BTS or BSC versions

cases.

Required Action
Operation
1. Check network coverage by analyzing and comparing

DT data and output coverage evaluation result and
problem areas.
Check network
coverage (power
matching and newly
deployed sites)
2. Check power matching after network swapping by

referring to the GSM Parameters Check theme and the
guide to checking power matching and output the check
results. Pay attention to common problems such as
combiner and tower-mounted amplifier (TMA) faults.
3. After network swapping or network expansion, obtain
and analyze the information about new sites, modified
sites, and changed sites and the changes in RF parameter
settings and output the impacts of these changes.
Analyze neighboring
relationships (for newly
deployed sites and
areas where Huawei
devices are
interconnected to
devices from other
vendors)
Analyze changes in
traffic and KPIs in
special scenarios
(networks supporting
GSM900 and DCS1800
and configured with coBCCH)
Subsequent Action
Deliverable
1. Analyzing neighboring relationships by referring to the

GSM Neighboring Cell Optimization theme and output the
analysis results.
2. After network swapping or network expansion, check
whether neighboring relationships need to be adjusted by
analyzing site changes and output the analysis results.
1. Coverage evaluation results of problem areas

and solution for optimizing RF coverage.
2. Check result of power matching accuracy and
solution for optimizing the power matching.
3. Analysis results of the information about new
sites, removed sites, and changed sites and
changes in RF parameter settings, impacts of
these changes, and solution for optimizing RF
coverage.
1. Analysis results of neighboring relationships,

such as missing neighboring cells and redundant
neighboring cells.
2. Conclusion in inheriting or adjusting neighboring
relationships
1. Optimize power matching.

2. Optimize RF coverage
3. Provide a summary report and cases.
1. Optimize neighboring relationships.

3. Solutions for optimizing neighboring

relationships.
1. Analyze the changes in traffic and KPIs and output the

analysis results and the impacts of these changes.
1. Changes in traffic and KPIs and impacts of

these changes.
2. In a network supporting GSM900 and DCS1800 and

configured with the co-BCCH, check the difference in call
drops and traffic distribution between GSM900 and
DCS1800 and between the overlaid subcell and underlaid
subcell.
2. Changes in traffic and KPIs in special

networking scenarios such as a dual-band network
and a network configured with co-BCCH and the
impacts of these changes.
3. Solutions and measures.
1. For call drops caused by reasonable

changes in traffic and KPIs, provide an
analysis report to explain the problem
objectively to the customer and provide
suggestions on how to resolve the problem.
For call drops caused by unreasonable
changes in traffic and KPIs, troubleshoot the
traffic and KPI problems.
2. Optimize traffic distribution in special
scenarios such as a dual-band network and
a network configured with the co-BCCH.
Huawei Confidential
Page 28

Required Action
Operation
Analyze the correlation between the traffic changes in

CS and PS services and the number of call drops and
Check CS and
output the traffic changes and the impacts of the
PS services (their
changes, including the changes in the proportions of
proportions and
data and CS services, change causes, and the
changes)
correlation between the traffic changes in data and CS
services and the number of call drops.
Analyze
frequencies after
network
expansion,
deployment, or
reconstruction
Subsequent Action
1. For call drops caused by reasonable traffic changes in CS

and PS services, provide an analysis report to explain the
problem objectively to the customer and provide suggestions on
1. Traffic changes in CS and PS services and
how to resolve the problem.
the impacts of the changes.
2. For call drops caused by unreasonable traffic changes in CS

and PS services, troubleshoot the traffic problems.
1. Analysis results of the frequencies used on

1. Analyze the frequencies used on the current network
the current network, evaluation result of the
and evaluate the frequency replanning gain by referring
frequency replanning gain, and solutions and
to the GSM Frequency Replanning theme and output the
measures for replanning frequencies or
analysis and evaluation results.
1. Replan or optimize frequencies.
optimizing frequencies.
2. Analyze whether there is internal and external
interference and output the analysis results.
2. Eliminate interference.
2. Interference analysis results and measures
for eliminating interference.
3. After network swapping or expansion, analyze whether

3. Conclusion in inheriting or adjusting
frequencies are inherited or replanned and output the
frequencies and solutions and measures for
conclusion.
Check for abrupt

events such as
charging policy
Analyze the impacts of abrupt events on call drops and
changes, weather output the analysis results.
changes, and
mass gatherings
Check for
complaints and
call drops due to
other causes by
analyzing CHRs
Deliverable
1. Analyze CHRs and output top N subscribers whose

calls drop, top N cells where call drops occur, top N call
drop causes, and characteristics of call drop causes
(especially the percentage of call drops caused by
disordered serial numbers). 2. Analyze the causes of the
call drops that subscribers complain by analyzing CHRs
and output analysis results.
1. Impacts of abrupt events on call drops.

1. For a reasonable increase in call drops caused by emergence

events, prepare an analysis report to explain the problem
objective to the customer and provide suggestions.
2. For an unreasonable increase in call drops caused by
emergence events, troubleshoot the problem.
1. Top N subscribers whose calls drop, top N

cells where call drops occur, top N call drop
causes, and characteristics of call drop
causes.
Take required actions according to the top N types of call drops

and causes.
Huawei Confidential
Page 29
Call Drops on the Entire Network

Required Action Checklist (1)
Required Action
Identify call drop
causes by analyzing
performance dataand
CHRs
Operation
Deliverable
Analyze performance datato determine the scope of the

call drop problem and identify the call drop causes
1. Top N types of call drops and causes.

In special scenarios such as network swapping, analyze
CHRs to determine whether calls initiated by certain types
of MSs or certain subscribers always drop.
Check the reasonableness and consistency of parameter 1. Check results.

settings by referring to the GSM Parameters Check
theme and output the check results.
parameter settings.
Check for BTS or BSC

version differences
and parameter
differences
1. Check results and impacts of the

Check for BTS or BSC version differences and parameter differences.
differences by referring to the GSM Parameters Check
theme and output the check results and impacts of the
parameter settings and BTS or BSC
differences.
versions.
Analyze changes in
traffic and KPIs in
special scenarios
(networks supporting
GSM900 and
DCS1800 and
configured with coBCCH)
Subsequent Action
Take required actions according to the top N types of call

drops and causes.


2. Optimize BTS or BSC versions
1. For call drops caused by reasonable changes in traffic

and KPIs, provide an analysis report to explain the
1. Analyze the changes in traffic and KPIs and output the 1. Changes in traffic and KPIs and impacts problem objectively to the customer and provide
of these changes.
analysis results and the impacts of these changes.
suggestions on how to resolve the problem. For call drops
2. Changes in traffic and KPIs in special
caused by unreasonable changes in traffic and KPIs,
2. In a network supporting GSM900 and DCS1800 and
configured with the co-BCCH, check the difference in call networking scenarios such as a dual-band troubleshoot the traffic and KPI problems.
network and a network configured with codrops and traffic distribution between GSM900 and
2. Optimize traffic distribution in special scenarios such as
DCS1800 and between the overlaid subcell and underlaid BCCH and the impacts of these changes. a dual-band network and a network configured with the
subcell.
co-BCCH.
Check CS and PS
services (their
proportions and
changes)
Analyze the correlation between the traffic changes in CS

and PS services and the number of call drops and output
1. Traffic changes in CS and PS services
the traffic changes and the impacts of the changes,
and the impacts of the changes.
including the changes in the proportions of data and CS
services, change causes, and the correlation between the 2. Solutions and measures.
traffic changes in data and CS services and the number
of call drops.
Huawei Confidential
1. For call drops caused by reasonable traffic changes in

CS and PS services, provide an analysis report to explain
the problem objectively to the customer and provide
suggestions on how to resolve the problem.
2. For call drops caused by unreasonable traffic changes
in CS and PS services, troubleshoot the traffic problems.
Page 30
Call Drops on the Entire Network

Required Action Checklist (2)
Required Action
Analyze
frequencies after
network
expansion,
deployment, or
reconstruction
Check for abrupt

events such as
charging policy
changes, weather
changes, and
mass gatherings
Operation
Deliverable
1. Analyze the frequencies used on the current

network and evaluate the frequency replanning gain
by referring to the GSM Frequency Replanning
theme and output the analysis and evaluation
results.
1. Analysis results of the frequencies used on

the current network, evaluation result of the
frequency replanning gain, and solutions and
measures for replanning frequencies or
2. Analyze whether there is internal and external

interference and output the analysis results.
2. Interference analysis results and measures

for eliminating interference.
3. After network swapping or expansion, analyze

whether frequencies are inherited or replanned and
output the conclusion.
3. Conclusion in inheriting or adjusting

frequencies and solutions and measures for
Analyze the impacts of abrupt events on call drops

and output the analysis results.
1. Impacts of abrupt events on call drops.

Subsequent Action
1. Replan or optimize frequencies.

2. Eliminate interference.
1. For a reasonable increase in call drops caused by

emergence events, prepare an analysis report to explain
the problem objective to the customer and provide
suggestions.
2. For an unreasonable increase in call drops caused by
emergence events, troubleshoot the problem.
Analyze the longterm traffic trends

due to seasonal
changes and
subscriber number
increase
Obtain the long-term trends of traffic and KPIs,

analyze whether the trends are consistent with the
trend of the call drop rate, and output the analysis
results.
Check for
complaints and
call drops due to
other causes by
analyzing CHRs
1. Analyze CHRs and output top N subscribers

whose calls drop, top N cells where call drops
occur, top N call drop causes, and characteristics of
call drop causes (especially the percentage of call
drops caused by disordered serial numbers). 2.
Analyze the causes of the call drops that
subscribers complain by analyzing CHRs and
output analysis results.
1. Correlation between the long-term trends of

traffic and KPIs and the trend of the call drop
rate.
1. For call drops caused by reasonable changes in traffic

and environment, prepare an analysis report to explain
the problem objective to the customer.
2. For call drops caused by unreasonable changes in
traffic and environment, troubleshoot the problem.
1. Top N subscribers whose calls drop, top N

cells where call drops occur, top N call drop
Take required actions according to the top N types of call
causes, and characteristics of call drop causes. drops and causes.
Huawei Confidential
Page 31
Call Drops in Top N Cells and on the Entire

Network Required Action Checklist
See the required action checklists for

call drops in the top N cells and on the
entire network.
Huawei Confidential
Page 32
Data Analysis Templates

The procedure for analyzing the call drop problem is as follows:
1. Analyze the call drop scope and causes based on various data such as traffic statistics,
signaling, DT data, alarms, parameter settings, and CHRs.
2. Take required actions to further analyze the call drop causes.
By using the following types of data analysis templates, you can quickly identify call drop
causes
and further identify the causes by taking the required actions:
1. Templates for identifying call drop causes
2. Templates for providing supplementary information for call drop analysis
The following attached excel

describes the common templates
for analyzing the call drop problem:
Common Templates
for Analyzing the Call
Huawei Confidential
Page 33
Templates for Identifying Call Drop Causes
There are four types of templates for identifying call drop causes:
Performance statistical analysis: 1. Templates for identifying the call drop scope (top N cells, entire network, or top N
cells+entire network) 2. Template for identifying the causes of call drops that occur in the top N cells and on the entire
network
CHR analysis: 3. Templates for identifying the call drop scope (top N MS types or top N subscribers) 4. Template for
identifying the causes of call drops that occur on top N types of MSs and top N subscribers.
Huawei Confidential
Page 34
Templates for Providing Supplementary Information for the

Call Drop Analysis Channel and Frequency Analysis
Common performance counters in RF tunnel and frequency analysis are:
Rate of Outgoing Handovers and Incoming Handovers (100% x (Outgoing Handovers/Incoming Handovers))
Rate of Good RxLev and Bad HQI on Downlink(Downlink Receive Level Rank 5~7, and Downlink Receive Quality
Rank 6~7)
Rate of Uplink-and-Downlink Imbalance(Downlink)(Uplink-and-Downlink Balance Level 1~2)
Rate of Uplink-and-Downlink Imbalance(Uplink)(Uplink-and-Downlink Balance Level 10~11)
Rate of Uplink Interference(Rate of Uplink Interference Band 4~5)
Rx Level Difference between Main and Diversity Antenna(Average Main Level in the Customized MR-Average
Diversity Level in the Customized MR)
If the scope of the call drop problem is top N cells, analyze the preceding performance counters of the top N cells. If the
scope of the call drop problem is entire network or top N cells+entire network, rank cells in the entire network by each of the
preceding performance counters to identify problem cells and analyze the problem cells on the entire network.
Huawei Confidential
Page 35
Templates for Providing Supplementary

Information for the Call Drop Analysis Device
Fault Analysis
Common performance counters in device fault analysis are:
TRX Usability(Abnormal Condition:<100%)
TCH Availability(Abnormal Condition:<100%)
Cell Out-of-Service DuRaten(BCCH Fault)(Abnormal Condition:>0)
Rate of CHAN_ACTIV Failure(Abnormal Condition:>0%)
Traffic Volume(Abnormal Condition:=0)
Outgoing or Incoming Handover Requests(Abnormal Condition:=0)
Channel Requests(Abnormal Condition:=0)

If the scope of the call drop problem is top N cells, analyze the preceding performance counters of the top N cells. If the scope of the call drop problem is
entire network or top N cells+entire network, rank cells in the entire network by each of the preceding performance counters to identify problem cells and
analyze the problem cells on the entire network.
Huawei Confidential
Page 36
Templates for Providing Supplementary Information for

the Call Drop Analysis Coverage Analysis
Common performance counters in coverage analysis are:
Rate of Weak Received-Power on Downlink(Downlink Receive Level Rank 0~2)
Rate of Weak Received-Power on Uplink(Uplink Receive Level Rank 0~2)
Rate of Bad HQI on Downlink(Downlink Receive Quality Rank 6~7)
Rate of Bad HQI on Uplink(Uplink Receive Quality Rank 6~7)
Rate of MRs (Weak Coverage)
Rate of MRs (Excessive Coverage)

If the scope of the call drop problem is top N cells, analyze the preceding performance counters of the top N cells. If the scope
of the call drop problem is entire network or top N cells+entire network, rank cells in the entire network by each of the preceding
performance counters to identify problem cells and analyze the problem cells on the entire network.
Huawei Confidential
Page 37
Templates for Providing Supplementary Information for

the Call Drop Analysis Neighboring Cell Analysis
Common performance counters in neighboring cell analysis are:
Proportion of Call Drop Rate Due to Handover
Success Rate of Outgoing Internal Inter-Cell Handovers
Success Rate of Incoming Internal Inter-Cell Handovers
Success Rate of Outgoing External Inter-Cell Handovers
Success Rate of Incoming External Inter-Cell Handovers
Success Rate of Internal Intra-Cell Handover, Handover Density ((Outgoing Handovers + Incoming Handovers)/Traffic Volume)
Rate of Outgoing Handovers and Incoming Handovers (100% x (Outgoing Handovers/Incoming Handovers))
If the scope of the call drop problem is top N cells, analyze the preceding performance counters of the top N cells. If the scope
of the call drop problem is entire network or top N cells+entire network, rank cells in the entire network by each of the preceding
performance counters to identify problem cells and analyze the problem cells on the entire network.
Huawei Confidential
Page 38
Templates for Providing Supplementary Information for the

Call Drop Analysis Traffic and Abrupt Event Analysis
To analyze call drops caused by traffic changes and abrupt environment changes,
analyze the trend of the call drop rate and the following performance counters: call
drop rate, traffic volume, call setup performance counters, handover performance
counters, coverage performance counters, device status performance counters,
channel and frequency performance counters, and neighboring cell performance
counters.
If the scope of the call drop problem is top N cells, analyze the preceding
performance counters of the top N cells. If the scope of the call drop problem is
entire network or top N cells+entire network, analyze both the preceding
performance counters and the trend of the call drop rate.
Huawei Confidential
Page 39
Templates for Providing Supplementary Information

for the Call Drop Analysis Dual-Band
Network/Overlaid
and Underlaid Subcell Analysis
For a dual-band or an enhanced dual-band network configured with overlaid and underlaid subcells,
analyze and compare the call drop and traffic counters of the bands and overlaid and underlaid subcells to
determine whether the call drop problem can be resolved by optimizing networking or parameter settings.
Huawei Confidential
Page 40
Required Actions Check RF Tunnels (1)

Triggering conditions:
1. If call drops occur after BTS adjustment during network swapping, network
deployment, or BTS upgrades, check all the RF tunnels on the entire
network.
2. If call drops occur after routine network optimization or device adjustment
during network expansion, BTS reparenting, or site maintenance, check
the RF tunnels in the sites where network optimization or device
adjustment are performed.
For details about how to check RF tunnels, see the 1 Detection and
Troubleshooting of GSM RF Tunnel Faults:
Principle+Tools+Cases+Deliverables 20110730.PPT.
Huawei Confidential
Page 41
Required Actions Check RF Tunnels (2)

Data and Characteristics
Data
Performance Data
DT Data and Signaling
[Data Analysis]
[Data Analysis]
1. Template for analyzing RF tunnels and frequencies

2. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Good RxLev and Bad HQI on Uplink
3. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Good RxLev and Bad HQI on Downlink
4. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Uplink-and-Downlink
Imbalance(Downlink)
5. Template for ranking cells by Uplink-and-Downlink Imbalance(Uplink)
6. Template for ranking cells by Uplink Interference
7. Template for ranking cells by Rx Level Difference between Main and
Diversity Antenna
8. Template for ranking cells by the mean signal strength difference between
the serving cell and the neighboring cell
1. Cross connections between cells: Perform

DTs to check whether the connections
between the main of a cell and the antenna
of another cell are cross connection and
check the order of wires.
Analysis
templates
[Characteristics]
and
1. The difference between the receive level of the main and the receive level of
characteristi
the diversity is great.
cs
2. The uplink and the downlink are imbalanced. (Proportion of uplink and
downlink imbalance level 1 + Proportion of uplink and downlink imbalance level
2) > 15% (poor downlink or good uplink) or Proportion of uplink and downlink
imbalance level 11 > 30% (good downlink or poor uplink)
3. The proportion of interference band levels 3 to 5 is high in a specific time
period or a day.
4. The proportion of call drops caused by poor HQIs is high.
5. The mean signal strength difference between the serving cell and the
neighboring cell is less than 0.
2. Antenna misconnections between cells:

Perform DTs along the direction of the major
lobe in the cells under possible problem
sites to check whether the BCCH of the
major lobe in each cell is the same as the
planned BCCH.
[Tools]
PRS, OMStar, and DownlinkAnalyse
DT software and IntferBandAnalyse
Huawei Confidential
[Data Analysis]
Alarm list
[Characteristics]
3. Interference caused by antenna
intermodulation: Conduct the start idle
The voltage standing
timeslot test and stop idle timeslot test on
wave radio (VSWR)
the LMT during off-peak hours and compare alarm is reported.
the interference band information carried in
Abis signaling before and after idle timeslots
are sent. If the interference increases after
idle timeslots are sent (the interference band
levels increase to 3 to 5), there is
interference from the antenna system of the
BTS.
[Tools]
Alarm and Log
Page 42
Required Actions Check for Device

faults
and
Alarms
Check for alarms in all scenarios and first clear the alarms that are related to call
drops and affect network performance. You can temporarily ignore the alarms not
related to call drops.
Data
Alarm and Log
Performance Data
[Data Analysis]
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
1. Template for analyzing device faults

2. Template for listing carriers with device faults
3. Template for identifying carriers without traffic volume or with low traffic volumes
4. Template for identifying carriers not involved in any handovers or with small numbers
of handovers
5. Template for identifying carriers without access success or with low access success
rates
[Characteristics]
1. Call drops may not be caused by Um interface problems. For example, call drops are
caused by Abis interface problems.
2. The call drop rate deteriorates abruptly.
3. The following items become abnormal: carrier availability, TCH availability, out-ofservice durations of cells, and out-of-service ratio of cells.
4. The channel activation failure ratio is greater than 0%, which indicates that the BTS or
transmission is faulty.
Huawei Confidential
[Data Analysis]
1. Alarm list
2. Device logs
[Characteristics]
1. Device or link fault alarms are
reported.
2. The device logs record some
internal alarms and assertions.
[Tools]
Alarm console, OMStar, and
some maintenance tools
Page 43
Required Actions Check All

Parameters (1)
1. Check all parameters on the entire network if call drops occur after the network
structure or traffic changes because of the following causes: CN parameter
adjustment, 2G or 3G service adjustment, parameter adjustment on the entire
network during network swapping, and network deployment, network upgrades,
and timer or soft parameter adjustment
2. Check all parameters for some sites in an area or at the boundaries of areas
served by the devices from other vendors if call drops occur after the network
structure or traffic changes because of the following causes: network expansion,
network reparenting, part parameter adjustment, coverage adjustment, and
adjustment of the boundaries of areas served by the devices from other vendors.
3. If the network structure or traffic does not change, check and optimize core
parameters during routine call drop optimization. If the call drop problem persists
after the core parameters are optimized, check all parameters.
Huawei Confidential
Page 44
Required Actions Check All

Parameters (2)
For details about how to check all parameters, see the 2 GSM
Parameters Check: Check Rules+Tools+Cases+Deliverables
20110730.PPT.
Data
Performance Data
Parameter s
[Data Analysis]
[Data Analysis]
[Data Analysis]
Perform DTs in the coverage of

the following areas to check
2. Template for analyzing the distribution of call
whether call drops are caused
drop causes
2. Check and optimize parameter
by inappropriate parameter
relationships.
settings: top N cells, boundaries
3. Template for analyzing the correlation
of areas served by the devices
between the trend of CS or PS service traffic
3. Check whether parameter settings from other vendors, areas
and the trend of the call drop rate
are consistent and perform other
where 2G/3G interoperability is
parameter checks.
allowed.
[Characteristics]
1. Template for analyzing call drop scopes
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
The scope of the call drop problem is top N

cells, entire network, or top N cells+entire
network.
1. Check and optimize parameter

settings.
[Tools]
[Tools]
PFMStudio, DAMS, CME, and

OMStar
DT software and signaling

analysis software
Huawei Confidential
Page 45
Required Actions Check for Version

Differences
If call drops occur after the BSC, BTS, or MSC is upgraded, check for
version differences.
Data

Performance Data
Parameter
[Data Analysis]
1. Template for analyzing call drop scopes
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
2. Template for analyzing the distribution of call drop causes
[Data Analysis]
[Characteristics]
Output all version differences in terms

of features, procedures, parameters,
and default values of parameters and
analyze whether the version
differences affect the call drop rates.
1. The scope of the call drop problem is top N cells, entire network, or top N
cells+entire network and the call drop rates deteriorate immediately after the
BSC, BTS, or MSC is upgraded.
2. The scope of the call drop problem is top N cells, the call drop rates
deteriorate immediately after the BTS or BSC is upgraded, and the
configurations of the top N cells are different from those of the cells where the
call drop rates are normal.
[Characteristics]
Some version differences affect the
call drop rates.
3. The versions of the BTSs serve the top N cells are different from the versions
of other BTSs.
Huawei Confidential
Page 46
Required Actions Analyze Neighboring

Relationships (1)
1. If neighboring relationships change after network deployment, network
swapping, or network expansion, analyze neighboring relationships.
2. If network scale or subscriber distribution changes, check and optimize
neighboring relationships periodically.
3. Perform centralized neighboring cell optimization on cell clusters with poor
KPIs or in VIP regions.
4. Optimize neighboring relationships before frequency replanning.
For details about how to optimize neighboring relationships, see the

6 GSM Neighboring Cell Optimization Principles, Tools, and
Deliverables 20110730.PPT.
Huawei Confidential
Page 47
Required Actions Analyze Neighboring

Relationships (2)
Data
Performance Data
Parameter
Other Data
[Data Analysis]
[Data Analysis]
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
1. Template for analyzing weak coverage

2. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Weak Received-Power on
Downlink
3. Template for analyzing inappropriate neighboring cells
4. Template for ranking cells by the proportions of call drops caused
by handovers
5. Template for ranking cells by the handover densities
6. Template for ranking cells by the handover success rates
7. Template for ranking cells by Outgoing Handover/Incoming
Handover
8. GSM Cell to GSM Cell Outgoing Handover Measurement
[Characteristics]
1. The call drop rates in the neighboring cells of some cells are high.
2. The handover success rates in some cells are low because of
inappropriate neighboring relationships.
3. Large numbers of handovers or only small numbers of handovers
occur in some cells.
4. The proportion of call drops caused by low levels is high for some
cells. The low-level problem may be caused by weak coverage due to
missing neighboring cells.
5. The differences between the numbers of outgoing handovers and
the numbers of incoming handovers are great for some cells.
[Tools]
Nastar and CellOpt
Perform DTs in top N cells, on the entire

network, or in the boundaries of areas
served by the devices from other
vendors to check for cross coverage
[Data Analysis]
and troubleshoot the cross coverage.
Handover parameters:
[Characteristics]
Check and optimize
handover parameters
1. Problems such as missing
when neighboring
neighboring cells, cross coverage, and
relationships are
inappropriate parameter settings exist.
inappropriate or large
2. After calls drop in a cell, MSs access numbers of handovers
or only small numbers
the network from other cells because
of handovers occur.
some neighboring cells are missing or
handovers are triggered with delays.
This is caused by inappropriate
parameter settings.
[Characteristics]
Handover parameter
settings are
3. Cross coverage occurs. That is, the
inappropriate or some
signal of the serving cell is too strong.
other configurations
As a result, handovers fail to be
need to be optimized.
triggered when MSs move to other cells.
[Tools]
1. Analyze MRs to identify missing

and redundant neighboring cells.
2. Analyze CHRs to check whether
an MS accesses the network from
the same cell where the previous
call drops. If the MS accesses the
network from a different cell, some
neighboring cells are not configured
or handovers are triggered with
delays.
3. Analyze CHRs to check whether
the last handover before the call
drops is successful. If the last
handover fails, the following
problems occur: co-BSIC problem,
weak coverage, interference,
resource congestion, or link faults.
[Tools]
Nastar and CellOpt
DT software and signaling analysis

software
Huawei Confidential
[Data Analysis]
Page 48
Required Actions Check the Parameters of the Other

Vendors Devices in the Boundaries of HW and Other
Vendors Devices
1. If network swapping or network deployment involves the boundaries of the areas served by the
devices from other vendors, check the parameters of the devices from other vendors before
network swapping or network deployment.
2. If the call drop rates in the boundaries of the areas served by the devices from other vendors are
abnormal, check the parameters of the devices from other vendors.
Data

DT Data and
Signaling
Performance Data
Parameter
[Data Analysis]
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
1. Template for analyzing weak coverage (top N cells, top N cells+entire network)
2. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Weak Received-Power on Downlink (entire network, top N cells+entire
network)
3. Template for analyzing inappropriate neighboring cells (top N cells, top N cells+entire network)
4. Template for ranking cells by the proportions of call drops caused by handovers (entire network, top N
cells+entire network)
5. Template for ranking cells by the handover densities (entire network, top N cells+entire network)
6. Template for ranking cells by the handover success rates (entire network, top N cells+entire network)
7. Template for ranking cells by Outgoing Handover/Incoming Handover (entire network, top N cells+entire
network)
8. GSM Cell to GSM Cell Outgoing Handover Measurement
[Characteristics]
1. The call drop rates deteriorate in the boundaries of the areas served by the devices from other vendors.
2. The differences between the numbers of outgoing handovers and the numbers of incoming handovers are
great in the boundaries of the areas served by the devices from other vendors.
3. The outgoing handover success rates are low and the incoming handover success rates are normal in the
boundaries of the areas served by the devices from other vendors.
4. The outgoing handover success rates and the incoming handover success rates are low in the boundaries
of the areas served by the devices from other vendors.
[Data Analysis]
Perform DTs in the
boundaries of the areas
served by the devices
from other vendors to
check whether call
drops are caused by
inappropriate parameter
settings.
[Tools]
DT software and
signaling analysis
software
[Data Analysis]
Analyze Huawei
parameters and the
parameters of the
devices from other
vendors in terms of
handovers, camp-on,
neighboring cells,
configurations, timers to
check whether the call
drop rates are affected
by inappropriate
parameter settings.
For details about how to check all parameters, see the

2 GSM Parameters Check: Check Rules+Tools+Cases+Deliverables 20110730.PPT.
Huawei Confidential
Page 49
Required Actions Check Network

Coverage (1)
1. Check network coverage if network structure and RF parameters such as power and
antenna configurations are adjusted during network swapping, network deployment, or
network expansion and compare the network coverage before and after the network
swapping, network deployment, or network expansion.
2. If the call drop problem persists after the RF tunnel faults are rectified, inappropriate
parameter settings are modified, and neighboring cells are optimized, check the network
coverage thoroughly and troubleshoot the coverage problems.
3. During routine network maintenance, check network coverage periodically.
Huawei Confidential
Page 50
Required Actions Check Network Coverage (2)
Data
Performance Data
[Data Analysis]
1. Template for analyzing weak coverage
2. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Weak
Received-Power on Downlink
3. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Weak
Received-Power on Uplink
4. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Bad HQI on
Downlink
5. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Bad HQI on
Uplink
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
6. Template for ranking cells by Rate of MRs (Weak

Coverage)
7. Template for ranking cells by Rate of MRs
(Excessive Coverage)
8. Template for analyzing the correlation between the
trend of CS or PS service traffic and the trend of the
call drop rate
[Characteristics]
1. A large number of call drops are caused by low
levels.
Parameter
[Data Analysis]
[Data Analysis]
1. Perform DTs on the entire network or in top N cells and

analyze the DT data.
1. Analyze CHRs to identify

the cell with the highest call
drop rate and the subscriber
with the highest call drop
rate in the problem cell and
perform DTs in the areas
where the call drop problem
is serve based on the
feedback from the
subscriber.
2. Perform DTs in special scenarios such as VIP regions,

indoor environment, campus, residential areas, and
highways or perform DTs in specified areas.
3. Perform coverage DTs in areas where subscribers
complain about call drops.
4. Analyze CHRs to identify the cell with the highest call
drop rate and the subscriber with the highest call drop rate
in that cell. Then, perform DTs in the areas where the call
drop problem is serve based on the feedback from the
subscriber.
[Data Analysis]
[Characteristics]
After network swapping,

check parameter
consistency and test
power matching based
on the typical power
setting on the original
network.
1. Call drops caused by abnormal handovers and low levels

occurs because the following problems occur: weak
coverage, coverage hole, cross coverage, downlink
interference, missing neighboring cells, or inappropriate
settings of handover parameters.
Check the settings of

power, TA gain, and
antenna parameters.
2. The antennas or combiners may be faulty or power

mismatch occurs if the coverage of a cell or a site shrinks
after network swapping.
2. The call drop rate increases and traffic volume

NOTE
decreases after network adjustment operations such as
It is difficult to identify the coverage shrink caused by power
network swapping, network deployment, network
matching problems and combiner faults by checking RF
expansion, and RF optimization.
tunnels. Therefore, you need to focus on power and
3. The proportions of weak coverage or cross coverage combiners if the RF tunnel check does not show any
MRs are high for some cells.
problems but the coverage shrinks.
Other Data
Huawei Confidential
2. Analyze MRs containing

information such as levels,
TA values, and quality
information to identify
coverage problems.
If the TA value is small but
the level is high, power is
wasted.
If the TA value is small and
the level is low, weak
coverage in buildings or RF
tunnel faults occur.
If the TA value is large but
the level is low, weak
coverage occurs.
If the TA value is large and
the level is high, cross
coverage occurs.
Page 51
Required Actions Analyze Changes in

Traffic and KPIs in Special Scenarios
Analyze changes in traffic and KPIs in dual-band networks,
enhanced dual-band networks, and concentric networks.
Data

Performance Data
[Data Analysis]
1. Template for comparing call drop trends between the two bands in a dual-band network or an enhanced dualband network.
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
2. Template for comparing call drop trends between the underlaid subcell and the overlaid subcell in a
concentric network.
[Characteristics]
1. The call drop performance differs greatly between the two bands in a dual-band network or an enhanced
dual-band network.
2. The call drop performance differs greatly between the underlaid subcell and the overlaid subcell in a
concentric network.
Huawei Confidential
Page 52
Required Actions Check CS and PS

services (Proportions and Changes)
If the call drop rate increases during a period and the increasing trend of
the call drop rate is correlated with the increasing trends of CS and PS
services, check the proportions of and changes in CS and PS services.
Data

Performance Data
[Data Analysis]
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
1. Template for analyzing the correlation between the trend of CS or PS service traffic and the trend of the call drop
rate
[Characteristics]
The call drop rate increases during a period and the increasing trend of the call drop rate is correlated with the
increasing trends of CS and PS services.
Huawei Confidential
Page 53
Required Actions Analyze Frequencies

(1)
After the current network operates for a period, the original frequency planning is not
applicable to the current network and the internal interference affects the overall network
performance because of network changes such as increasing subscribers, traffic
transfer, network expansion, site relocation, repeater addition, and coverage adjustment.
Huawei Confidential
Page 54
Required Actions Analyze Frequencies

(2)
For details about how to replan frequencies, see the 5 GSM

Frequency Replanning Process, Principles, Tools, and Deliverables
20110730.PPT.
Data

Performance Data
Other Data
[Data Analysis]
1. Template for analyzing RF tunnels and frequencies
2. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Good RxLev and Bad HQI on Uplink
3. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Good RxLev and Bad HQI on Downlink
4. Template for ranking cells by Rate of Uplink-and-Downlink Imbalance(Downlink)
5. Template for ranking cells by Uplink-and-Downlink Imbalance(Uplink)
Analysis templates 6. Template for ranking cells by Uplink Interference
and characteristics
[Characteristics]
1. The performance counters related to call drops change with the traffic volume and deteriorate
significantly during peak hours.
2. The proportion of call drops caused by poor quality during peak hours is high.
[Data Analysis]
Analyze MRs and output the interference
matrix.
[Characteristics]
There are a lot of intra-frequency and interfrequency neighboring cells generating great
interference signals.
[Tools]
CellOpt
3. The proportion of HQIs 6 and 7 increases significantly during peak hours.

4. During peak hours, the proportion of interference band levels 4 and 5 is high and there is no
external interference.
Huawei Confidential
Page 55
Required Actions Check for Abrupt

Events
If the call drop rate increases abruptly and the call drops are not caused by external
interference or network adjustment such as device faults, parameter modification,
and network upgrades, check for abrupt events that may affect coverage or traffic,
such as charging policy changes, weather changes, mass gatherings, and returning
of college students to campuses.
Data

Performance Data
[Data Analysis]
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
1. Template for analyzing the correlation between the trend of CS or PS service traffic and the trend of the call drop rate
[Characteristics]
The call drop rate increases abruptly and the time and location of the call drop rate problem is the consistent with those
of an abrupt event that affects coverage and traffic, such as charging policy changes, weather changes, mass
gatherings, or returning of college students to campuses.
Huawei Confidential
Page 56
Required Actions Analyze the

Long-Term Traffic or KPI Trends
If the call drop rate increases slowly with seasonal traffic changes, analyze the longterm traffic or KPI trends to determine whether the increase in the call drop rate is
acceptable.
Data

Performance Data
[Data Analysis]
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
1. Template for analyzing the correlation between the trend of CS or PS service traffic and the trend of the call drop rate
[Characteristics]
The call drop rate increases slowly with seasonal changes in traffic and increase in the subscriber number.
Huawei Confidential
Page 57
Required Actions Check for Complaints and Call

Drops Caused by Other Causes by Analyzing CHRs
1. When tracing and analyzing the signaling of VIP subscribers to ensure the service quality, check
for complaints and call drops caused by other causes.
2. Subscribers complain about call drops.
3. When analyzing call drop records thoroughly, check for complaints and call drops caused by
other causes. Currently, no tool is available for analyzing call drop records thoroughly and
therefore engineers must be highly qualified.
4. Call drops due to other causes refer to abnormal call releases due to causes other than Um
interface problems and are classified into call drops due to disordered serial numbers, call drops
due to sudden downlink failures, and call drops due to BSC-initiated releases. The call drops due
to other causes can be identified by analyzing CHRs traffic statistics, and signaling.
Data

Other Data
[Data Analysis]
Analysis
templates and
characteristics
Obtain the following information by analyzing CHRs:

1. Detailed cause values of call drops
2. Top N cells with high call drop rates
3. Top N subscribers with high call drop rates
4. CHRs of VIP subscribers
5. CHRs of subscribers who complain about call drops
Huawei Confidential
Page 58
Required Actions
The attached excel provides the triggering
conditions, templates, data, and characteristics
related to the required actions.
.xlsx
Huawei Confidential
Page 59
Checking for Call Drops Not Caused by

Um Interface Problems
Focus on the call drops measured as CM333 and CM334 and ignore
the call drops caused by failures to start loopback and failures to return
to normal calls from loopback because BSC or BTS local switching is
disabled in most cases.
Determine whether the Abis interface links are faulty by analyzing the
proportion and number of the call drops measured by CM333. If call
drops occur because the RSL is disconnected, they are measured as
CM333.
Determine whether some devices are faulty by analyzing the
proportion and number of the call drops measured by CM334. The call
drops caused by the following operations are measured as CM334:
Enable TRX mutual aid; dynamically modify cell attributes, TRX
frequencies, or TRX FH data; dynamically delete cells or TRXs;
blocking cells, TRXs, or channels
The call drops caused by software errors are also measured as
CM334.
If the number of call drops measured as CM333 and CM334 increases,
check for and clear related alarms. Check for and rectify transmission
and hardware faults onsite if necessary.
Huawei Confidential
Alarm ID
1000
11270
11278
11280
20081
20082
2204
4414
3606
Page 60
Alarm Name
LAPD_OML Fault Alarm
Transmission LAPD Link
Interrupt Alarm
E1/T1 Local Alarm
E1/T1 Remote Alarm
Loss of E1/T1 Signals
Alarm(LOS)
Loss of E1/T1 Frames
Alarm(LOF)
TRX Commnunication Alarm
TRX VSWR Alarm
DRU Hardware Alarm
Identifying and Troubleshooting Call Drops Due

to Other Causes
Call drops due to
other causes
Call drops due to

disordered serial numbers
Call drops due to

sudden downlink failures
Call drops due to

sudden level decreases
Call drops due to other causes refer to abnormal call releases due to
causes other than Um interface problems and are classified into call
drops due to disordered serial numbers, call drops due to sudden
downlink failures, and call drops due to BSC-initiated releases. Such call
drops can be identified by analyzing CHRs, traffic statistics, and
signaling.
BSC-initiated releases are generally caused by transmission faults,
hardware faults, resource faults, or resource insufficiency. The call drops
due to BSC-initiated releases can be identified by CM333 or CM334, or
BSC Release in CHRs and seldom occur on the network. If such call
drops count for more than 5% of the total call drops, troubleshoot them
by rectifying transmission and hardware faults, resolving resource
related
alarms.
problems,
Call drops and
due clearing
to disordered
uplink
serial numbers, call drops due to
sudden downlink failures, and call drops due to sudden level decreases
can be identified by analyzing the traffic statistics, CHRs, and signaling.
The possible root causes for such call drops include signaling
interference, intermodulation interference between MSs, and subscriber
behaviors such as MS power-off.
The inter-frequency intermodulation interference is the root cause for the
call drops due to disordered serial numbers and call drops due to
sudden downlink failures. You can reduce the probability of
intermodulation interference by taking the following measures:
1. Enable dummy bit randomization
2. Enable Flex Tsc in limited areas
3. Enable encryption
4. Adjust ARFCNs
Huawei Confidential
Call drops due to

transmission faults
Signaling for call drops due to sudden

downlink failures and sudden level decreases
Page 61
Common Measures for Troubleshooting

Call Drops
To improve the network quality, be meticulous in rectifying hardware
faults, solving antenna problems, eliminating interference, planning
frequencies, and optimizing neighboring cells.
Interference is a direct reason for call drops over the Um interface.
With the increase in traffic volume, especially the rapid increase in
data traffic volume, interference increases in the same frequency
reuse pattern. Therefore, decreasing interference can decrease the
number of call drops.
Common measures are as follows:
1. Optimize power control parameters. For details about how to set
these parameters, refer to the related documents at
http://support.huawei.com.
2. Perform PS uplink power control to decrease the impact of PS
services on CS services. This measure may improve CS counters
but deteriorate PS counters to some extent.
3. Disable intra-cell handovers.
4. Enable the PS DTX function to decrease the interference to PS
services and therefore decrease the number of call drops.
5. Adjust traffic distribution on a dual-band network to ensure that the
two bands share the traffic properly.
6. Enable the no downlink MR handover feature to ensure that
handovers can be performed when no downlink MR is available to
prevent calls from being released abnormally. This measure
decreases the number of call drops to some extent.
7. Ensure that the number of static PDCHs is not greater than that
before the network swapping.
Huawei Confidential
Page 62

Call Drop Cases
Huawei Confidential
Page 63
Case 1 Impact of Parameter Settings of

Other Vendors' Equipment on Call Drops
Overview
After network swapping at an O site in country S the call drop rate increases and does
not meet the requirement. This problem is caused by weak coverage and inappropriate
parameter settings of the equipment from a vendor other than Huawei.
Problem Analysis
Step 1: Determine the scope of the call drop problem. According to the analysis of
traffic statistics, the call drop problem occurs on the entire network and in top N
cells, most of which are in the boundaries of the areas served by the devices from
other vendors
Step 2: Analyze the call drop causes. According to the analysis of traffic statistics,
most call drops are caused low levels over the Um interface.
Huawei Confidential
Page 64
Case 1 Impact of Parameter Settings of Other

Vendors' Equipment on Call Drops
Step 3: Take required actions.
Required Action
Data Analysis Result
Conclusion
Check RF tunnels for main and diversity faults, cross

connections, and interference
The call drop problem occurs in few cells.
Check for device faults and alarms
The call drop problem occurs in few cells.
Acceptable

N/A
Check the parameters of the devices from other

vendors in the boundaries of the areas served by the
Traffic statistics: Most top N cells are in the boundaries

of the areas served by the devices from other vendors.
DT data: MSs are handed over to Huawei cells even if
the levels in the cells served by the devices from other
vendors are high.
The handover parameter settings of the devices from

other vendors are inappropriate. As a result, MSs are
likely to be handed over from the cells served by the
devices from other vendors to Huawei cells due to high
TA values or low levels. In this case, there is a high
probability of call drops.
Analyze neighboring relationships (for newly deployed

sites and areas where Huawei devices are
Acceptable
interconnected to devices from other vendors)
Check network coverage (power matching and newly

deployed sites)
Traffic statistics: The proportion of cells with low uplink

levels is high.
DT data: Weak coverage occurs.
Serious weak coverage occurs because the antenna

tilts are large at some sites.
Analyze changes in traffic and KPIs in special

scenarios (networks supporting GSM900 and
DCS1800 and configured with co-BCCH)
N/A
Check CS and PS services (their proportions and

changes)
This required action is not taken.
Analyze frequencies after network expansion,

deployment, or reconstruction
Check for abrupt events such as charging policy

changes, weather changes, and mass gatherings
Analyze the long-term traffic trends due to seasonal

changes and subscriber number increase
Check for complaints and call drops due to other

causes by analyzing CHRs
Huawei Confidential
Page 65
Case 1 Impact of Parameter Settings of Other

Vendors' Equipment on Call Drops
Step 4: Troubleshoot call drops and evaluate the result.
Required Action
Conclusion
Solution
Effect Evaluation
Check RF tunnels for main and

diversity faults, cross connections,
and interference
The levels of the main and diversity are different for

some cells.
Rectify the RF tunnel fault.
The call drop rate decreases.
Rectify the device faults.
The call drop rate decreases.
Check for device faults and alarms Some cells report device fault alarms.
Check the parameters of the
devices from other vendors in the
boundaries of the areas served by
the devices from other vendors
The handover parameter settings of the devices from

other vendors are inappropriate. As a result, many
calls drop because of low levels after MSs are handed
over from the cells served by the devices from other
vendors to Huawei cells.
The call drop rate in the top N cells in

Adjust the handover parameter
the boundaries of the areas served by
settings of the devices from other
the devices from other vendors
vendors.
becomes normal.
Check network coverage (power

matching and newly deployed
sites)
Serious weak coverage occurs because the antenna

tilts are large at some sites.
Adjust the antenna tilts.
The number of call drops due to low

levels decreases and the call drop
rate becomes normal.
The following figure shows the troubleshooting measures and the trend of the call
drop rate. After the coverage and the handover parameter settings of the devices
from other vendors are adjusted, the call drop rate decreases significantly.
Huawei Confidential
Page 66
Case 2 Impact of Traffic Sharing on a

Dual-Band
Network
on
Call
Drops
Overview
After network swapping, network expansion, network deployment, or UMTS900 refarming at a PT site in country
P, the call drop rate does not meet the requirement. The analysis shows that the call drop rates are different
between GSM900 and DCS1800 and the handover parameter settings are inappropriate. The call drop rate
decreases significantly after the traffic on GSM900 and DCS1800 is balanced by adjusting parameter settings.
Problem Analysis
Step 1: Determine the scope of the call drop problem. According to the analysis
of traffic statistics, the call drop problem occurs on the entire network and in top N
cells, most of which work on GSM900.
most call drops are caused by Um interface problems due to high levels and poor
quality.
Huawei Confidential
Page 67

Dual-Band Network on Call Drops
Required Action
Calls are difficult to hand over from GSM900 to DCS1800 because some
parameters such as Inter-layer HO Hysteresis are set inappropriately.

matching and newly deployed sites)
Traffic statistics: The proportion of call drops due to high levels and poor quality is
high.
DT data: The downlink interference is strong.
Analyze changes in traffic and KPIs

in special scenarios (networks
supporting GSM900 and DCS1800
and configured with co-BCCH)
Traffic statistics: The receive quality and call drop rate differ greatly between
GSM900 and DCS1800. In addition, the proportion of call drops due to high levels
and poor quality is high for cells working on GSM900.
DT data: The downlink interference is strong in cells working on GSM900.
Conclusion
Huawei Confidential
After network swapping, network

expansion, network deployment, or
UMTS900 refarming, the call drop
rates differ greatly between
GSM900 and DCS1800 due to
inappropriate parameter settings.
Page 68

Dual-Band Network on Call Drops
Required Action
Conclusion
Solution
Effect Evaluation
After network swapping, network expansion,

network deployment, or UMTS900 refarming,
the call drop rates in the cells working on
GSM900 increase significantly because of
heavy load and strong interference caused by
inappropriate parameter settings.
Transfer some traffic from

GSM900 to DCS1800 by
adjusting the settings of
parameters such as Interlayer HO Hysteresis.
The call drop rate

decreases significantly
after the parameter
settings are adjusted. See
the following figure.

matching and newly deployed sites)
Analyze changes in traffic and KPIs
in special scenarios (networks
supporting GSM900 and DCS1800
and configured with co-BCCH)
Huawei Confidential
Page 69
Case 3 Impact of Co-BCCH Traffic

Sharing on Call Drops
Overview
After network swapping at a GP site in country B, the Minutes per Drop (MPD) performance does not meet the
requirement. Most calls access the overlaid subcell where the level is low, which affects the overall MPD
performance. After the parameters related to assignment and handovers between the overlaid subcell and the
underlaid subcell are modified, the traffic is shared properly between the overlaid subcell and the underlaid
subcell and therefore the overall MPD performance improves significantly.
Problem Analysis
of traffic statistics, the call drop problem occurs in top N cells and most top N cells
are the overlaid subcells.
Huawei Confidential
Page 70
Case 3 Impact of Co-BCCH Traffic

Sharing on Call Drops
Step 4: Troubleshoot call drops

and evaluate the result.
Required Action
Conclusion
Solution
Effect Evaluation
1. The traffic in the underlaid subcell is heavier than that

in the overlaid subcell because the settings of the
parameters related to assignment and handovers
between the overlaid subcell and the underlaid subcell
are inappropriate.
2. The PDCH configuration on the current network is
inconsistent with that on the original network.
1. The MPD performance

deteriorates because a large
number of calls access the
overlaid subcell where the
signal level is low.
2. PS services affect the
normal access of CS services
because the PDCH
configuration on the current
network is inconsistent with that
on the original network.
1. Adjust the settings of the

parameters related to
assignment and handovers
between the overlaid subcell
and the underlaid subcell to
balance the traffic between
the overlaid subcell and the
underlaid subcell.
2. Adjust the PDCH
configuration on the current
network.
The overall MPD

performance
improves
significantly.
Analyze changes in traffic

and KPIs in special
scenarios (networks
supporting GSM900 and
DCS1800 and configured
with co-BCCH)
Traffic statistics: According to the KPI and the traffic in

the overlaid subcell and underlaid subcell, the MPD
performance in the overlaid subcell is better than that in
the underlaid subcell.
DT data: According to the signaling, the proportion call
drops due to low levels is high in the overlaid subcell.
Huawei Confidential
Page 71
Case 4 Impact of Seasonal Changes

on Call Drops
Overview
After network swapping at a Telnor site in country N, the MPD performance of multiple clusters does not meet
the requirement. After a series of optimization and adjustment operations, the MPD performance of these
clusters improves to some extent but still does not reach the benchmark. According to the analysis of long-term
traffic during past years, the traffic and MPD performance varies significantly with season. In summers, the
overall MPD performance deteriorates significantly. After the network swapping, the MPD performance of some
clusters is not worse than the MPD performance during the same periods in the past years but still does not
reach the benchmark.
Problem Analysis
of traffic statistics, the call drop problem occurs in top N cells and on the entire
network.
most call drops are caused by Um interface problems.
Huawei Confidential
Page 72
Case 4 Impact of Seasonal Changes

on
Call Drops
After a series of optimization and adjustment operations such as RF tunnel optimization, parameter setting
adjustment, neighboring cell optimization, and coverage optimization, the MPD performance of some clusters
improves to some extent but still does not reach the benchmark.
According to the analysis of long-term traffic during past years, the traffic and MPD performance varies
significantly with season. In summers, the overall MPD performance deteriorates significantly. After the network
swapping, the MPD performance of some clusters is not worse than the MPD performance during the same
periods in the past years but still does not reach the benchmark.
Step 4: Troubleshoot call drops and evaluate the result .

Seasonal changes can bring changes in radio environment and traffic and therefore affect call drops significantly
in many regions. For example, thunderstorms and leafy trees in summers bring changes in radio environment.
The season when the network swapping is verified is different from the season when the benchmark is defined.
Therefore, explain the impact of seasonal changes on call drops to the customer objectively.
NOTE
The MPD performance deterioration at the Telenor site in country N is caused by multiple causes and the
season factor is only one of them.
Huawei Confidential
Page 73
Case 5 Call Drop Troubleshooting in a

Typical Area
Overview
At a site of Daqing branch of China Mobile around the Longfeng expressway bridge, the call drop rate is high.
After DTs, problem analysis, and adjustment operations, the call drop rate decreases significantly.
Problem Analysis
Step 1: Determine the scope of the call drop problem. The call drop problem
occurs in the area around the Longfeng expressway bridge.
Huawei Confidential
Page 74
Case 5 Call Drop Troubleshooting in

aStepTypical
Area
3: Take required actions.
Required Action
Conclusion
Solution
Effect Evaluation
Check RF tunnels for main and diversity

faults, cross connections, and interference
Acceptable
Acceptable
Check network coverage (power matching

and newly deployed sites)
Traffic statistics: Most call drops

The Longfeng expressway bridge runs
are caused low levels over the Um through a wetland preservation area, where
interface.
no primary network coverage is available
and therefore the network coverage is
Analyze neighboring relationships (for newly DT data: No primary network
chaotic. As a result, calls are handed over
coverage
is
available
and
deployed sites and areas where Huawei
randomly between cells, interference is
therefore
the
network
coverage
is
devices are interconnected to devices from
strong, and the network quality is poor. The
chaotic.
As
a
result,
calls
are
other vendors)
DT before optimization operations shows
handed over randomly between
that the network quality is poor and
cells, interference is strong, and
Analyze frequencies after network
handovers are performed frequently.
the
network
quality
is
poor.
expansion, deployment, or reconstruction
Huawei Confidential
Determine the cells providing

primary network coverage,
optimize neighboring
relationships, optimize
frequencies, and adjust
parameter settings.
Page 75
The call drop rate

in the problem
area decreases
significantly. The
following figures
show the receive
quality before and
after optimization.
Case 6 Call Drops Due to

Inappropriate Parameter Settings
Overview
The call drop rate in a cell is high because calls are likely to drop after being handed over to the cell from cells
served by another BSC. This problem is caused by inappropriate settings of inter-BSC handover parameters.
Problem Analysis
occurs in top N cells.
Huawei Confidential
Page 76
Case 6 Call Drops Due to Inappropriate

Parameter
Settings
Required Action
Traffic statistics: Most call drops are caused low levels over the Um interface.
Analyze neighboring
deployed sites and areas
where Huawei devices are
interconnected to devices
from other vendors)
DT data: A call initiated in cell A is handed over to cell B where the level is low. As a result,
the call drops after the handover. According to the moving direction of the DT car, the call
should be handed over to cell C where the level is higher than that in cell B.
Check network coverage

(power matching and
newly deployed sites)
Conclusion
On the current network, if

the level of a neighboring
cell under another BSC is
greater than 82 dBm, this
neighboring cell has a
Parameters: Cell A and cell C are served by the same BSC and cell B is served by another higher priority than the
BSC. For cells served by the same BSC, Inter-layer HO Threshold is set to 63 and bit 14 neighboring cells served by
the same BSC as the
of the 16-bit priority is set to 1. For the neighboring cells served by another BSC, Interlayer HO Threshold is set to 25. In this case, if the level is greater than the sum of Inter- serving cell. As a result,
calls in the serving cell are
layer HO Threshold and HO Hysteresis, bit 14 of the 16-bit priority is set to 0. On the
first handed over to the
current network, if the level of a neighboring cell served by another BSC is greater than
82 dBm, the neighboring cell has a higher priority than the neighboring cells served by the neighboring cell served by
same BSC as the serving cell. As a result, calls in the serving cell are first handed over to another BSC. This handover
mechanism is inappropriate.
the neighboring cell served by another BSC.
Huawei Confidential
Page 77
Solution
Effect
Evaluation
Adjust the
setting of
Inter-layer
HO
Threshold
for the
neighboring
cells served
by another
BSC.
The call
drop rate
becomes
normal.
Case 7 Call Drops Due to Cross

Coverage
Overview
The call drop rate in a cell is high and the proportion of call drops due to low levels is high. This
problem is caused by cross coverage. If cross coverage occurs, calls are not handed over in
time and therefore drop when MSs move to street corners.
Problem Analysis
Huawei Confidential
Page 78
Case 7 Call Drops Due to Cross

Coverage

Required Action
Conclusion
Solution
Effect
Evaluation
Check RF tunnels for main and diversity faults,

cross connections, and interference
Acceptable
Acceptable
Acceptable
The call is not handed

over to cell B in time
because cross
coverage occurs in
cell A.
Adjust the antenna

tile and azimuth of
cell A to control the
coverage.
The call drop

rate becomes
normal.
Analyze neighboring relationships (for newly

Traffic statistics: Most call drops are caused low
deployed sites and areas where Huawei devices are levels over the Um interface.
DT data: A call in cell A is not handed over to cell
B when the MS is moving to a street corner. After
Check network coverage (power matching and
the MS passes through the street corner, the call
newly deployed sites)
drops because the level decreases and the
network quality becomes poor.
Huawei Confidential
Page 79
Case 8 Call Drops Due to Missing

Neighboring Cells
Overview
The call drop rate in a cell is high and the proportion of call drops due to
low levels is high. This problem is caused by missing neighboring cells.
Problem Analysis
Step 1: Determine the scope of the call drop problem. The call drop
problem occurs in top N cells.
Step 2: Analyze the call drop causes. According to the analysis of traffic
statistics, most call drops are caused low levels over the Um interface.
Huawei Confidential
Page 80
Case 8 Call Drops Due to Missing

Neighboring Cells

Required Action
Conclusion
Solution
Effect Evaluation
Check RF tunnels for main and diversity

faults, cross connections, and interference
Acceptable
Acceptable
Acceptable
The call fails to be

handed over from cell A
to cell B because cell B
is not configured as a
neighboring cell of cell A
and therefore drops.
Add a
neighboring
relationship
between cell
A and cell B.
The call drop

rate becomes
normal.
Analyze neighboring relationships (for newly Traffic statistics: Most call drops are caused low levels over the Um
deployed sites and areas where Huawei
interface.
devices are interconnected to devices from
DT data: After the test MS in cell A passes through the corner of the
other vendors)
street, the network quality becomes poor. The call initiated by the test
MS fails to be handed over to cell B because cell B is not configured
Check network coverage (power matching
as a neighboring cell of cell A and therefore drops. After the call
and newly deployed sites)
drops, the test MS initiates another call and accesses cell B.
Huawei Confidential
Page 81
See the following

figure.
Case 9 Call Drops Due to Interference

Overview
The call drop rate in a cell is high. Because of uplink interference, calls in the cell are
likely to drop or be handed over to neighboring cells and then drop due to low levels in
the neighboring cells. The call drop rate becomes normal after the ARFCNs of the cell
are changed.
Problem Analysis
Step 1: Determine the scope of the call drop problem. The call drop problem occurs in top N cells.
Step 2: Analyze the call drop causes. According to the analysis of traffic statistics, most call drops
are caused by Um interface problems due to the high uplink level but poor uplink quality in the
problem cell and low downlink levels in the neighboring cells.
Most call drops are caused by Um interface problems due to the high uplink level but poor uplink
quality in the problem cell and low downlink levels in the neighboring cells. In addition, uplink
interference is strong in the cell and reverse handovers occur frequently on carrier A in the cell.
Because of the uplink interference on carrier A in the cell, calls in the cell are likely to drop or be
handed over to neighboring cells and then drop due to low levels in the neighboring cells.
The call drop rate becomes normal after the ARFCN of carrier A is changed to an ARFCN without
interference.
Huawei Confidential
Page 82
Case 10 High Call Drop Rate Due to

BTS Upgrade
Overview
After all the BTSs are upgraded from BTS3012 V100R008C11B325 to V100R008C12SP26 at a site in country I,
the call drop rates of some BSCs increase because the default values of Second-Level Filter are different
between the two BTS versions. The call drop rates become normal after the default value of Second-Level Filter
in BTS3012 V100R008C12SP26 is changed to 200 kbit/s.
Problem Analysis
Step 1: Determine the scope of the call drop problem. According to the analysis of traffic statistics, the call drop
problem occurs on most BSCs in the entire network.
Step 2: Analyze the call drop causes. According to the analysis of traffic statistics, most call drops are caused by
Um interface problems due to high levels and poor quality.
The call drop rates increase after the BTS upgrade. Therefore, check whether the call drop rate problem is caused
by the differences in BTS versions.
The default values of Second-Level Filter are different between the two BTS versions.
BTS3012 V100R008C12SP26: 260 kbit/s
BTS3012 V100R008C11B325: 200 kbit/sIn tight frequency reuse pattern, uplink interference increases if the
bandwidth increases from 200 kbit/s to 260 kbit/s, which increases the call drop rates.
The call drop rates become normal after the default value of Second-Level Filter in BTS3012 V100R008C12SP26
is changed to 200 kbit/s.
Huawei Confidential
Page 83
Case 11 Call Drops Due to Coverage

Changes Caused by Addition of Combiners
Overview
After network swapping at site A, the call drop rates are high in the cells covering two tunnels.
After the network swapping, the network coverage decreases because some combiners are
added to BTSs. As a result, the call drop rates increase. After the power is adjusted, the call
drop rates become normal.
Problem Analysis
Huawei Confidential
Page 84
Case 11 Call Drops Due to Coverage

Changes Caused by Addition of Combiners

Required Action
Conclusion
Solution
Effect
Evaluation
Check for device faults and

alarms
Acceptable
Acceptable
Analyze neighboring
deployed sites and areas where
Acceptable
Huawei devices are
interconnected to devices from
other vendors)
After the network

swapping, some
combiners are added to
BTSs but the power of
the BTSs is not
increased. As a result,
the network coverage
becomes weak.
Increase the
power of the
BTSs to
which
combiners
are added.
The network
coverage and
call drop
rates become
normal.
Check RF tunnels for main and

Some combiners are added to BTSs, but the
diversity faults, cross
power of the BTSs is not increased.
Check network coverage
(power matching and newly
deployed sites)
Traffic statistics: Most call drops are caused

low levels over the Um interface.
DT data: The network coverage becomes
weak after the network swapping.
Huawei Confidential
Page 85
Complaint About Call Drops on the

GSM Network in Chengdu
Overview
At 10:38 on November 12, 2010, one CDMA subscriber in F5 building of Huawei R&D Center in Shenzhen
called a GSM subscriber in Chengdu. The call dropped.
According to the analysis of CDMA CHRs, the call is released by the

MSC on the CDMA network.
Cause Value
of a Call
Release
272
Meaning of the Cause

Value
Telephone Number of the

Calling/Called Party
Access Time
(Precise to Second)
Access Time
(Precise to
Millisecond)
Call
Duration
MSC_REL_NORMAL
_CLR
(The MSC releases a
call normally.)
1528101****
2010-11-12 10:38
960
163770
According to the analysis of GSM CHRs, the call is released with the
cause value "Sequence error". As a result, the call is released by the
MSC on the CDMA network.
Huawei Confidential
Page 86
Call
Flag
Introduction to Three Network Optimization Tools

Evaluation of Working Efficiency of the Tools
Used to Take Required Actions for Call Drop Analysis
Huawei Confidential
Page 87
Three Network Optimization Tools

Network Optimization
Network optimization: Network

optimization involves a lot of manual
analysis. This consumes not only labors
A lot of persons, equipment, and time are required for DTs.

A lot of work is involved to replan the frequencies of the
entire network.
KPIs and subscriber experience cannot be closely
and time, but also introduces risks.

Tool application: Currently, three network
optimization tools can be used in basic
network optimization analysis, including
integrated.
VIP subscribers cannot be monitored.
It is difficult to analyze the complaints and assumptions
usually used in locating problems.
Reports are generated inefficiently and cannot be combined
TOP cell filtering, neighboring cell

optimization, and frequency optimization.
Tool deployment: You need to purchase a
with concrete scenarios.

A lot of persons are involved and it is difficult to manage
parameters.
server. Ensure that the data to be

analyzed by the tools are MRs and CHRs.
Nastar
PRS
DAMS
In addition, you need to add SAUs for the

BSC because a lot of data is involved.
Three Network Optimization Tools
Huawei Confidential
Page 88
Support Capability of Three Network Optimization

Tools
Tool
Main Feature
V9R8C12SP21 V9R8C12SP23
V9R11C00
Neighboring cell analysis
Coverage analysis
Frequency analysis
Assisted analysis of complaints
VIP KPI analysis
PRS
Report system
DAMS
Data management system
Nastar
Network
Monitoring
Four
Main
Functions
RF Optimization
Network KPIs + Top N Cells + Top N TRXs
Frequency Optimization + Neighboring Cell Optimization + Interference Analysis + Overlay Analysis
Customer
Experience
VIP Guarantee + Complain Handling
Parameters
Management
Query & Sharing of Data + All Network Parameter Check + Modification & Management
Huawei Confidential
Page 89
RF Optimization - Nastar
Analysis of GSM-UMTS
neighboring cells
UMTS
Neighboring cell analysis
Coverage analysis
GSM
Frequency analysis
Cell performance analysis
Assisted analysis of complaints
VIP KPI analysis

Note: For information about how to use these three network optimization tools, see their help files
which you can obtain after you install the tools.
Huawei Confidential
Page 90
Analyzing CHRs by Using the Nastar

Using the cell performance analysis function provided by the Nastar,
you can analyze CHRs to quickly locate common problems at the
network level and provide methods for backtracking abnormal
problems.
Start
Create an E2E task for cell

performance data analysis
Create a task for importing cell

performance data
Check the completeness of cell

performance analysis data
Create a task for cell performance

analysis
Check the results of the cell

performance analysis
Export the report of the cell
performance analysis
End
See the Nastar help.
Huawei Confidential
Page 91
Top N Cell Filtering - PRS
Chart
Display of various charts
Top N
Abnormal counters are highlighted.
The same indicator is displayed in different charts.

Different parameters are displayed in different charts in the
same report.
Focus on the key information in the KPI report.

Huawei Confidential
Page 92
Core Parameter Check - DAMS
ye
Collect parameter check and optimization

experience of experts
(Rule development platform)
Entire Network Parameter Check

All
parameters on the entire network are checked twice

a week.
Check all parameters on the entire network

(Parameter check of the DAMS)
Are the
settings of some parameters
inappropriate?
If any parameter settings are inappropriate, engineers

can modify them directly.
Personnel are specially assigned for checking all

parameters on the entire network.
Twice a week
Yes
Modify parameters
Parameter Modification
Problem resolved
Parameter
Parameter
Parameter adjustment
adjustment
adjustment
requirement 2
requirement n
requirement 1
Top N cell/carrier identification, onsite test, and complaint handling
Check configuration or
engineering parameters.
(One engineer)
Modify/Check parameters
Parameter modification involves engineering

parameters and configuration parameters. Onsite
engineers modify the engineering parameters and
system engineers modify the configuration parameters.
Configuration parameters are classified into different
levels. Low-level configuration parameters can be
modified by any engineers and high-level configuration
parameters can be modified only by system engineers.
Parameter modification must be checked by the DAMS
and approved by the personnel specially assigned for
checking parameters.
The DAMS manages the parameter modification
history.
Query parameter
modification history
Deliver modified parameters.
Problem resolved
Parameter management: Check/Export parameters and manage

parameter modification history
Huawei Confidential
Introduction to Three Network Optimization Tools

Evaluation of Working Efficiency of the Tools
Used to Take Required Actions for Call Drop Analysis
Huawei Confidential
Page 94
Appendix Evaluation of Working Efficiency of

the Tools Used to Take Required Actions for
Call Drop Analysis
Required Action
Tool
Processing Duration
Required by Tools
Traffic statistics: 10
minutes/BSC
CHRs: 20~30 minutes/BSC
Traffic statistics: PRS and excel

templates
CHRs: Nastar and Insightsharp
OMStar, MainDivAnalyse,
Check RF tunnels for main and diversity faults, cross
DownlinkAnalyse, and
5 minutes/BSC
IntferBandAnalyse
OMStar and alarm console
5 minutes/BSC
Parameter check tool and OMStar 1~5 minutes/BSC
Not available
Check the parameters of the devices from other
vendors in the boundaries of the areas served by the Not available
Analyze neighboring relationships (for newly
deployed sites and areas where Huawei devices are Nastar
30 minutes
Check network coverage (power matching and newly
Not available
deployed sites)
Analyze changes in traffic and KPIs in special
scenarios (networks supporting GSM900 and
Not available
DCS1800 and configured with co-BCCH)
Check CS and PS services (their proportions and
Not available
changes)
Analyze frequencies after network expansion,
Nastar and MapInfo
60 minutes/BSC
deployment, or reconstruction
Check for abrupt events such as charging policy
Not available
changes, weather changes, and mass gatherings
Analyze the long-term traffic trends due to seasonal
Not available
changes and subscriber number increase
Check for complaints and call drops due to other
Nastar and Insightsharp
10~30 minutes/BSC
causes by analyzing CHRs
Identify call drop causes by analyzing performance
dataand CHRs
Huawei Confidential
Processing Duration Required by

Manual Analysis
Traffic statistics: 20~30 minutes/BSC
CHRs: 20~30 minutes/BSC
30 minutes/BSC
30~60 minutes/BSC
30~90 minutes/BSC
Not sure
10~20 minutes/cell
1~3 minutes/cell for identifying missing
neighboring cells and top N cells
60 minutes/BSC
20 minutes/BSC
20 minutes
30~60 minutes/BSC
A long time for obtaining data and 10
minutes for analyzing data
A long time for obtaining data and 10
minutes for analyzing data
Statistical analysis: 30~60 minutes/BSC
Single-call CHRs: 3~10 minutes/Call
Page 95
Thank you
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GSM Call Drop: Influence Factors +

July 30, 2011

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

1. Added call drop analysis based on various data and

Qi Haofeng (employee ID: 118729), Si

Ni Hongxiang (employee ID: 50342), Zhu Kan

7. Added the cases of optimizing the top N cells where

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

R&D Technical Support

See the telephone book.

See the telephone book.

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Call Drop Problem Overview

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Call Drop Measurement

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Call Drop Types in Terms of KPIs

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Types of Call Drops Caused by Um

Call drops caused by Um interface problems

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Example: Percentages of Various Call

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Call Drop Problem Overview

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Procedure for Analyzing Call Drops

Step 2: Analyze call drop causes based on various data.

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Principle for Analyzing Call Drops: Analyze Data,

1. Determine the scope of the call

3-1. Take the required actions for analyzing the

3-2. Provide solutions and determine how to

4-1. Troubleshoot the call drop problem by troubleshooting

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Determining the Scope of the Call Drop

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Determining the Scope of the Call Drop

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Analyzing Call Drop Causes

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Analyzing Traffic Statistics

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Tools and Methods for Analyzing Traffic

Call drop rates and percentages of various call drops

Tools: excel template attached and OMStar to be released

Template for analyzing call drop data:

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Call Drop(RF Cause)

CHR is a call history record, which logs the detailed

information about each call.

drops caused by CN problems (do not affect call drop KPIs),

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Call Drops on TCH(TA)

Tools and Methods for Analyzing CHRs

See the Insightsharps help.

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Analyzing Signaling and Single-Subscriber CHRs

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Tools and Methods for Analyzing

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DT data contains only the downlink information about a single subscriber.